It’s summer—and it’s very hot, with temperatures reaching almost 110 degrees. One weekend, you tell yourself, “It’s time to go shopping!” On your list are few items you need in order to have a fabulous summer look, including that adorable dress you saw in your favorite store ad, plus designer shoes, jewelry and a few feminine
“must-haves.” Story continues…
Jul 20, 2010 | By Celia Gonzalez | Categories: Business, Featured, Recently Featured | Tags: credit card, debt, shopping | Leave A Comment »
Passion is perhaps the most important ingredient when creating a recipe–even more so when creating a restaurant. Alejandra Chavez, Chef/Owner of Thyme Matters, clearly puts passion into everything she does. You can hear it in the way she speaks, you can see it in the way she works, and you can sense it in the atmosphere of her restaurant, “Thyme Matters.” Her restaurant has helped start a trend in homegrown restaurants that are blooming all over the Sun City, and her menu has set the bar pretty high. Story continues…
Jul 20, 2010 | By SVL Staff | Categories: Business, Featured, Recently Featured | Tags: Business, latinas, thyme, woman | Leave A Comment »
We’ve seen many successful dynamic duos throughout history; Laverne and Shirley, Batman and Robin, Sonny and Cher. Now El Paso’s got a duo of its own: Annette Lawrence and Vanessa Muñoz. Story continues…
Jun 01, 2010 | By Farzad Farrokhnia | Categories: Business | Tags: action, Business, Food, latina, latinas, magic pan, restaurant | Leave A Comment »
When I first spoke to Luciana Cazares on the phone to set up a time for our interview, I could already feel that she was such a warm person, full of energy, life and love. When I walked into her home, I could feel that my prior sentiments were right on target. Story continues…
May 05, 2010 | By Farzad Farrokhnia | Categories: Business | Tags: Business, child, entrepreneur, mother, woman | Leave A Comment »
Whether you’re eloping to Vegas or tying the knot with a fairytale wedding—no matter how you say “I Do,” one thing is always certain: the day after saying your vows, a certain reality sets in. Life together suddenly becomes more complicated than choosing a new sectional sofa or fighting over Project Runway vs. ESPN. Your relationship evolves into a life together where issues like budgeting, credit cards and even your bi-monthly spa trips are put under a giant microscope.
Monica Narvaez, [CFP®, Director of Financial Planning and Partner, at Strategic Wealth Advisors and Financial Advisor with Investors Capital Corporation] helps couples not only eliminate debt but also accumulate wealth. She lent us her expertise in order to help newlywed readers get their checkbooks ‘in check.’ While finances can be a conversational landmine for new couples, considering the following fundamentals can help avoid unpleasant conversations later and ensure financial stability now.
Discuss Your Priorities
Before committing to a plan, keep in mind the basics of your marriage. Things like age, income level and amount of debt can be important factors in determining the first steps you need to take. While a couple in their mid 20s may want to focus on paying off school loans, others may want to start saving for a down payment on their first home. Narvaez notes that it’s important at this stage to “be realistic” about your priorities and “know what you can and cannot spend your income on.”
Whether you plan to travel the world or prefer to populate it in your first few years of marriage, recognize what your priorities are and determine a way to accomplish them. Focus on paying down debt and building for the future. Now that your credit scores and financial history are intertwined, it’s important to stay honest and on track because, as Narvaez says, “No one likes surprises.”
Set Common Goals
An unavoidable dilemma arises after reading guideline number one. Your partner is thinking, “backpack through Europe” and you are already choosing the tile for your brand new condo. It is simply impossible to set a budget and stick with it if you are each saving money for different goals. Discussion and compromise need to take place in order to get you both on the same wavelength. Many couples forget that the root of money problems is a lack of communication; view this conversation as an opportunity to strive for something together.
Narvaez suggests that couples work together by “establishing a plan to get a good handle on income and expenses. Then agree on a dollar amount to save every month in order to reach your goals.”
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Once common goals and a budget are established, it’s important to stick with them. Imagine your husband splurging on sports while you opt out on your weekly mani/pedi in order to afford a nicer home. Avoid making him feel the same way by watching where your money goes when it comes to wardrobe and personal beauty. Abiding by the plan you create together shows that you respect and care about one another’s feelings and that you’re willing to work as a team.
Have an Emergency Plan
Last but not least, always be prepared for life’s little “what ifs.” You never know when the unexpected will occur so try to build an emergency fund – ideally, it should equal the cost of living for about three months. Narvaez recommends that newlyweds “start saving or investing early on. Ideally, do so systematically from your paycheck every month. As the saying goes, ‘out of sight, out of mind.’ Couples get accustomed to living on the difference and the result is a nice, fat bank account.”
Overall, financial planning is a joint effort that requires compromise and trust. Work on finding a middle ground so that the monetary goals you have agreed on as a couple are made possible and you can prevent one of the most prevalent causes of unsuccessful marriages in the United States.
Quick Guide to Financial
Planning for Newlyweds:
Establish your Budget
Focus on Reducing Debt
Be Honest with Each Other
Set Common Goals
Save, Save, Save!
Respect the Plan
Set Up an Emergency Fund
Whether you’re eloping to Vegas or tying the knot with a fairytale wedding—no matter how you say “I Do,” one thing is always certain: the day after saying your vows, a certain reality sets in. Story continues…
Apr 14, 2010 | By Amy Arsenault | Categories: Business, Featured, Recently Featured | Tags: budget, finances, Marriage, money | Leave A Comment »
It’s a fact of life we will all encounter obstacles of varying degrees in our lives. However, what we choose to do with those challenges and opportunities not only defines us, but our potential course in life. We invite you to meet three inpiring
El Paso Latinas who exemplify the mindset and fortitude needed to succeed.
It’s a fact of life we will all encounter obstacles of varying degrees in our lives. However, what we choose to do with those challenges and opportunities not only defines us, but our potential course in life. We invite you to meet three inspiring El Paso Latinas who exemplify the mindset and fortitude needed to succeed. Story continues…
Apr 13, 2010 | By SVL Staff | Categories: Business, Featured, Recently Featured | Tags: Business, latinas, women | Leave A Comment »
Sandra Orrantia, DWS Building Supply, Sabrina Voohries, DWS Building Supply and Norma Jean Magaña, Sergio Lewis Body Shop
In El Paso, we are seeing women in power in fields that are typically associated with men. Many times, these women have had to face an old challenge: proving they can do the job as well as, if not better than, a man. Story continues…
Mar 12, 2010 | By Melissa Sobey | Categories: Business, Featured, Recently Featured | Tags: Business, economy, employer, positive, startup, value, women | Leave A Comment »
Sylvia Martinez, Administrator, Altomar Home Healthcare
When it was unpopular for women to achieve academic greatness and lead career-oriented lives, Sylvia Martinez did it. Without much support from her family, Sylvia earned a Bachelor of Science at UTEP and worked as a nurse in the newborn and pediatric intensive care units at Providence Memorial Hospital. Story continues…
Feb 10, 2010 | By Jessica Escalante | Categories: Business, Featured | Tags: Health & Exercise, Health Care | Leave A Comment »
Getting the Right Job and Keeping It;
Hiring the Right People and Keeping Them
Getting the Right Job and Keeping It; Hiring the Right People and Keeping Them
So you made yourself a promise that this year you would step out of the boat and make a career change. The word on the job market, though, has not been too terribly encouraging and with headlines on job markets using verbs such as tough, tight, low and loss–instead of stepping out of the boat, making a move now conjures up feelings of walking the plank. Story continues…
Feb 10, 2010 | By Norma Carnera | Categories: Business, Featured | Tags: Business | Leave A Comment »
As the nation’s unemployment rate hovers around 10 percent one might not think this the best time to start a business, well think again. Story continues…
Jan 01, 2010 | By Khushroo Ghadiali | Categories: Business, Featured | Tags: Business, expenses, profit, small, startup | Leave A Comment »
Back in the day, a dairyman would take Bessie the cow down to the local market. The dairyman would meet a farmer there, and Bessie would set off for her new home, having been bartered for a winter’s worth of corn. Story continues…
Jan 01, 2010 | By Ruth Gifford-Diaz | Categories: Business | Tags: bartering, Business, cash, flow, money, small business, startup | Leave A Comment »
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